Mac OS 7 gets the latest update

April 7, 1997 The Apple operating system is getting the latest update with Mac OS 7.6.1.

The update contains several bug fixes and support for Apple’s new Power Macs and PowerBook 3400. Most importantly, this is the end of the System 7 era, which began back in 1991.

System 7

Unlike today, when we get a supposedly new version of macOS every year, things were slower in the 1990s. Version 7 was released in May 1991, introducing some interesting features such as the introduction of QuickTime for Mac.

It was the first Apple operating system available on CD. By the way, customers could also get it on 15 floppy disks (!). This version of the OS was the Mac operating system that struggled to conquer the world (at least in terms of popularity) with the first of its competitors, Windows 95.

Before Windows 95 hit store shelves on August 24, 1995, Cupertino employees rolled around with bumper stickers that read “Windows 95 = Macintosh’89.” The joke compared Microsoft’s new operating system to a 4-year-old Mac OS.

Unlike today’s free macOS upgrades, users who wanted to upgrade the OS paid for it, even if they had already bought an earlier version. Given that only minor improvements were added to it, this has become a point of contention.

Looking for something new

Since March 1994, Apple has been discussing the further development of the operating system. The new name “Copland” represented it as a complete reinvention of the Mac OS.

However, Copland was never released after a beta release in November 1995. Apple continued to roll back the release date for the full version, and the project’s budget gained momentum. In 1996, Apple hired 500 engineers to work on the project, but then-CEO Gil Amelio canceled its release after Apple’s staggering $700 million quarterly loss.

Mac OS 7.6.1: the last chance for the era of Mac clones

Meanwhile, Apple had a good reason to scrap System 7 and replace it with Mac OS 8, which was released a few months after Mac OS 7.6.1 was released in 1997.

It was the rise of the Mac clone era. Apple has licensed Mac OS to several companies such as Power Computing and Radius to increase its PC market share.

However, this misguided strategy did cost Apple money. The $50 fee Apple received for every Mac sold didn’t come close to making up for the money lost by people buying third-party Macs instead of more expensive official ones.

As a result, Apple decided to release its next operating system update under Mac OS 8 instead of Mac OS 7.7. The name change meant that Cupertino could stop deals with clones, since the agreements signed with them only apply to updates to the 7th version of the OS.

With the release of Mac OS 8, Apple decided it could negotiate new, better terms with third parties licensing its operating system. But, as you can see, it didn’t work out.